Rack for cards or sheets



March 24, 1959 D. M. JOHNSON 2,878,605

7 RACK FOR CARDS OR SHEETS Filed Feb. e, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 w. w M x//i/ A L I Fig Fig. 3

M/ 1 5 N 7' 0R 0 M Johnson ATTORZVEY March 24, 1959 D. M. JOHNSON RACK FOR CARDS OR SHEETS Filed Feb. 6, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 win! 1 l Fu llllllll INVENTOR 0. M. Johnson \kll ATTORNEY United States atent RACK FOR CARDS OR SHEETS Darrell M. Johnson, Thomson, Ga.

Application February 6, 1956, Serial No. 563,481

4 Claims. (Cl. 40-124) This invention relates to card, picture and sign exhibiting and more particularly to a rack for holding cards or sheets in'a manner that they are readily visible and accessible and one or both surfaces thereof may be readily viewed or inspected.

The invention relates specifically to a rack having flexible strips or slats arranged in parallel contacting relation so that cards or sheets may be inserted and held therebetween and is a continuation in part of application 172,157 filed July 1950, for a Changeable Exhibiting Rack, Patent No. 2,738,605, granted March 20, 1956.

Structures of various types have been used for holding various objects including cards, sheets, and the like. However, these structures have not been fully satisfactory but have been subject to criticism on account of being complicated, expensive, and impractical as well asfor other reasons.

It is an object of the invention to provide a simple and inexpensive rack for holding cards, sheets, or the like so that access may be readily had thereto as well as a rack of relatively few parts which can be produced in a minimum of time and which will last indefinitely.

Another object of the invention is to provide a rack which can be readily produced from a continuous ribbon or strip of material and having spring fingers struck therefrom for locating and securing parallel slats in the proper cooperative relation.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective of a rack having a frame, a backing, a series of parallel concave-convex strips forming slats, and a series of transverse tensioning members;

Fig. 2, a perspective of a rack composed of a frame and a series of smaller removable racks;

Fig. 3, a section on the line 33 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4, a section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5, a perspective of the convex surface of one of the slats disclosing the flexible slat spacing and holding fingers;

Fig. 6, a perspective of a rack composed of a frame and a series of slats without a back or tensioning memhers;

Fig. 7, an enlarged vertical section taken through the rack of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8, a perspective of a slat used in Figs. 6 and 7 having spring fingers located on its concave side;

Figs. 9 and 10, perspectives of concavo-convex slats having a series of integral fingers adjacent each edge located on their convex andconcave sides respectively;

Fig. 11, an enlarged vertical section of a rack composed of a frame and slats like those of Fig. 9;

Fig. 12, an enlarged fragmentary vertical detail section through the intermediate portions of the slats of Fig. 11 and between the longitudinally disposed spring fingers; and

Fig. 13, a section similar to that of Fig. 11 composed of a frame and slats like that of Fig. 10.

Briefly stated, the invention is a rack having a frame with a groove or channel along the inner surface of its top and sides, a backing, and with angle iron reinforce ments for said backing and frame. A series of parallel relatively thin flexible concave-convex strips or slats are mounted in said frame with the ends of said slats located within the grooves in the sides of the frame. The slats have spring fingers struck from their convex sides which receive and provide stops for the edges of adjacent slats so that they are retained in intimate parallel relation, the flexibility of the slats permitting flexing sufficient for the insertion and releaseable holding of relatively thin cards or sheets. Strips of U-shaped channel iron are disposed from top to bottom of the front of the rack and transversely of the slats for adjusting or varying the pressure therebetween and the frame also is provided with screw eyes or hangers for hanging the frame on a wall.

Instead of the frame of Fig. 1 in which the slats extend from one side of the frame to the other, the rack may be composed of a main frame and a series of smaller frames located and removably maintained within the' main frame by suitable means, and with hinge brackets for engagement within openings in the ends of each removable frame so that it can be pivoted in a manner to be swung about a vertical axis and affording greater access thereto.

With continued reference to the drawing the rack of the present invention comprises a frame having upper and lower frame members 10 and 11, left and right side sections or posts 12 and 13, and a back 14 which may be reinforced in any desired manner as, for example, by a series of angle irons 15.

Tension strips 12 preferably of light gage U-shaped construction are placed from top to bottom across the front of the slats at regularly spaced intervals for applying pressure to the slats.

The top 10 is provided with a slot or groove 16 along its inner portion and the sides may be similarly slotted or grooved, no slot or groove being necessary in the bottom 11. The top, bottom and side sections of the frame have each of their ends cut at an angle of 45 where they join the others and the sections of the frame and the back may be joined together in any desired manner as, for example, by cement or by other type of fastening means.

The fastening of the frame members to the back is adequate to hold the parts in similar relationalthough cement or other fastening means at the corners between the respective frame members may be employed for connecting the same if desired.

A series of concavo-convex strips or slats 17 are mounted within the frame with their concave surfaces exposed or located forwardly, the lower edge of the bot tom slat resting on the bottom 11 (Fig. 3) and the ends of the same resting in the slots or grooves in the side members 12 and 13 of the frame. The slot or groove in the top of the frame permits upward movement of the slats sufficient to permit insertion and removal of the slats one at a time.

In the manufacture of the slats the material is pro duced in a continuous strip and the desired length there of detached so that, if desired, the slats may extend from one side of the frame to another. In order to maintain the slats in partially overlapping relation, so that the lower edge of the next higher slat will be disposed along the intermediate portion of the rear convex surface of the next lower slat, the slats have spring fingers 18 struck therefrom beneath which against the convex surface of the slat the edge of the next succeeding slat can be located. The spring fingers 18 are preferably located along each slat, one spring finger adjacent each end of the slat and with additional spaced intermediate spring fingers as required.

The slats 17 are flexible and although except for the bottom one, the lower edge of each strip or slat is in contact with the convex .rear surface of the next lower slat. However the slats are sufiiciently flexible to permit the insertion therebetween of relatively thin objects such as cards, sheets or the like as shown in Fig. 1, and in order to support the frame, suitable hangers such as screw eyes 19 may be provided for engagement by supporting hooks or the like (not shown).

I If desired, a series of racks may be removably mounted within a single frame. As shown in Fig. 2, a frame composed of a top 20, a bottom 21, left and right posts or side members 22 and 23, and a back 24 may be provided. The members to 24 may be of square or other cross section with flat inner surfaces in order to receive a smaller frame with flat outer and rear surfaces to fit thereagainst.

Any desired number of smaller frames may be employed regardless of size, each having top and bottom members 10' and 11' and side members 12 and 13', respectively.

.The adjacent surfaces of these relatively small frames are adapted to be disposed in contacting side by side relation with the upper ends of the frames located beneath retaining projections 25, one at the upper end of each frame, and the lower ends of the frames are adapted to be removably retained by rotary latches 26 one for each frame. By the rotation of the pivoted latch at its bottom, each frame may be independently inserted and removed.

In order that the smaller frames may be used independently, each frame is provided at each upper corner with a vertical opening 27 and at each lower corner with a similar opening 28 for reception of upper and lower pivot pins or pintles 29 and 30 carried by brackets 31 and 32, respectively. The pins 30 are relatively short and only of a length sufficient to perform the necessary pivotal action while the pins 29 are longer so that they may be inserted further in the receiving openings in the frames and such frames lowered to receive the pins 30 in the openings 28. The spacing of the brackets 31 and 32 corresponds to the length of the smaller frames plus the length of the short pintle 30, thus one of the small frames maybe removed from the larger frame and disposed in upright position to pivot or swing from either side for ready access.

If desired frames such as that described may be produced and, with the backing 14 omitted, placed substantially horizontally or in slightly inclined readily accessible position in a drawer or the like, and when such drawer is open a card or cards 33 held between the flexible slats within one of the frames and designated, if desired, by an "indicator 34, may be examined and the frame turned over and the cards held on the other side of the frame may be likewise examined.

In Figs. 6, 7, 11 and 13 racks are disclosed corresponding to those of Figs. 1 and 3 and which include hollow rectangular frames and concavo-convex strips or slats but with no solid backing for the frames making it possible for the rack to be viewed from either front or rear and with or without pressure strips 12" and angle braces 15 which cooperatively hold the slats so that they frictionally engage each other under pressure.

Instead of the slats 17 similar slats 35 may 'be employed. As viewed in Fig. 6 the convex sides of the slats are for- Ward and on the concave sides of such slats near their extremities are struck out small spring fingers 36 so that they will be concealed in the slot or groove 37 of the end frame member 12. In like manner the frame member 13 has a similar slot along its inner portion for receiving the opposite ends of the slats and the spring fingers located thereon. -When the slats are in position the spring fingers will be near the uppermost edges and consequently the lower edgeof the next higher slat will be received by such spring fingers. The slats thus held can be flexed between the longitudinally disposed spring fingers so that a card sheet or relatively thin object may be inserted, and when the slats are within the frames when viewed from the convex side they present a substantially smooth surface.

Instead of slats 35, similar slats 38 may be employed having spring fingers 39 on its convex surface adjacent its corners, or as shown in Fig. 10 a slat 40 may be employed having spring fingers 41 on its concave side struck from its corners.

Slats of various kinds including those of the several figures of the drawings can be assembled so that alternate concave and convex portions may 'be view ed from either side of the frame. Also, as illustrated in Fig. 12, a rack having slats with fingers as in Fig. 9 a card or sheet 42 may be inserted from top to bottom between the respective slats in which event the top of the frame may be provided with a slot 43 as shown in Fig. 11.

In the several views the slots or grooves in the frame in which the ends of the slats are received is of a width such that when the slats are disposed therein the desired pressure will be maintained between contacting edges of the slats.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention is susceptible of substantial variation in the arrangement of the slats and the integral flexible fingers.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification, but only as indicated in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A display rack for retaining a plurality of cards comprising a rectangular frame including top, bottom and side portions, said top and side portions including a communicating groove on adjacent inner faces, and a plurality of elongated flexible slats having a concavoconvex cross section removably retained under pressure at opposite ends in the communicating groove in opposed portions of said side portions of said frame, adjacent slats being disposed in longitudinally overlapped parallel relation under pressure to grip the cards, said slats including longitudinally spaced aligned spring fingers equidistant from the slat edges and projecting laterally from the general plane of the slats and toward one edge thereof removably receiving the longitudinal edge of an adjacent slat therein for maintaining the slats in oriented parallel assembled relation, certain of said slats being movable toward the communicating groove in the top portion of the frame to permit the insertion and removal of various slats.

2. The display rack of claim 1 in which said spring fingers are adjacent the end portions of said slats and within the communicating groove on the inner faces of the side portions of said frame whereby the exterior surface provided by the overlapped slats is uninterrupted.

3. The display rack of claim 1 in which said spring fingers of certain slats project laterally in aligned longitudinally spaced pairs toward both longitudinal edges of said certain slats, and each of the adjacent longitudinal overlapped edges of a contiguous pair of slats is received within an aligned pair of spring elements on said certain slats.

4. A display rack for retaining a plurality of cards comprising a frame including top, bottom and side portions, said top and side portions including a groove on adjacent inner faces, and a plurality of elongated flexible slats having a concavo-convex cross section removably retained under pressure at opposite ends in the groove in opposed portions of said side portions of said frame, adjacent slats being disposed in longitudinally overlapped parallel relation under pressure to grip the cards, said slats including longitudinally spaced aligned spring fingers equidistant from the slat edges and projecting laterally from the general plane of the slats and toward one edge thereof removably receiving the longitudinal edge of an adjacent slat therein for maintaining the slats in oriented parallel assembled relation, certain of said slats being movable toward the groove in the top portion of the frame to permit the insertion and removal of various slats.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Hill Dec. 10, 1867 Reynolds Dec. 17, 1912 Klatt June 19, 1923 Orzchovski May 5, 1925 Johnson Mar. 20, 1956 

